AgroFood Systems

The concentration in the Sociology of Agriculture and Food Systems presents students with both classic sociological and contemporary approaches to the study of agriculture. Research areas include the social structure of agriculture, debates over the “family farm” and the industrialization of agriculture, farm labor, environmental-agricultural interactions, farm population dynamics, agrarian gender relations, state institutions and policies, farmer social movements, agriculture and rural communities, the globalization of agriculture, and agricultural science, technology, and research. Several courses and seminars are offered. Most students in this area also participate in the STARE (Science, Technology, Agriculture, Resources, and the Environment) seminar. The Sociology of Agriculture and Food systems also has a strong applied or policy dimension. The Applied Population Laboratory, housed in Rural Sociology, is an excellent source for census data on farmers, farm households, and agriculture. The Program on Agricultural Technology Studies conducts research and outreach on technological change, land use dynamics, and the structure of agriculture in Wisconsin.